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Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 2030 Agenda represent global development programs. Education can widen the acknowledgement of their relevance and their applications. This survey aims to assess awareness, knowledge and attitudes towards SDGs and sustainability among first-year students in nine Italian Universities. A Likert scale-based online questionnaire of 70 items was compiled by students from March to July 2019. It examined knowledge and expectations referred to sustainable development concepts, indicators and documents/models accounting for sociodemographic variables. Statistical analyses performed were Chi-square test, Fisher's Exact test, Kendall's W correlation coefficient, univariate and multivariate analysis. The questionnaire was completed by 1676 students. A low percentage referred a good knowledge of SDGs and 2030 Agenda, most of them had never attended related educational activities previously. Better knowledge of SDGs and 2030 Agenda was observed in case of previous specific educational activities ( p < 0.001). The expectation towards university guaranteeing an education on SDGs was high, both for personal wisdom and for usefulness in future professional context. A significant difference ( p < 0.001) in such expectations was found, as healthcare students were less interested than colleagues of other areas. The results showed low knowledge but interest towards sustainable development. A scheduled implementation of academic initiatives should be considered.

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The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) require the implementation of 167 targets aimed at eradicating poverty, protecting the planet and improving the quality of life of humankind. The United Nations calls for uniform sustainable development at the global, local and individual levels. This research pursues a twofold objective: first, to obtain evidence on the extent to which the achievement of the (SDGs) may be uniform across territories; second, to identify the socioeconomic characteristics that contribute to sustainable development. The empirical analysis has been carried out using clustering, cross efficiency and contingency tables applied to statistical information from 101 municipalities in Spain and Italy. The results provide evidence of inequalities between territories, revealing that only in the dimensions People (SDGs 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5) and Prosperity (SDGs 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11) has the desired homogeneity been attained. Notable differences are found in the degree of compliance with the other SDGs. Furthermore, it is shown that the socioeconomic characteristics associated with the geographical location contribute substantially to the gap between municipalities. In order to ensure countries' sustainable development, there is a need for environmental policies adapted to the specific features of each region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the effect of ownership on sustainable development and environmental policy in Italian municipally owned corporations (MOCs) dealing with urban waste management, trying to understand if multiple ownership can generate better performance compared to single ownership and if the presence of private partners could be crucial in this. The research question is answered by analyzing 41 MOCs of the largest Italian cities operating in urban waste management. In this specific sector, public administrations have tried to improve their offer in terms of sustainable development, environmental policy, and efficiency. The paper covers the Italian case study, where urban waste production per capita is higher than the European average figure. The waste cycle management service is operated in Italy at local level through totally publicly owned companies (monoadministration or multiadministration), mixed (public–private) companies, or via a full externalization achieved by means of public tenders. Through a multinomial ordered probit panel, we show that MOCs with multiple owners perform better than those having a single owner and perform much better with the presence of a private partner, confirming those academic findings according to which collaborative arrangements can increase efficiency, do better than public sector bureaucracy, and lower the costs of service provision. The results of this paper can be used by academics, practitioners, and policy makers alike. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only study that applies this perspective to the analysis of the current international waste management scenario with relation to MOCs having multiple ownerships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • We partition Italian municipalities into homogeneous groups with similar features. • To form the groups, we use the drivers of separate waste collection. • The quality of local institutions emerges a key variable in this procedure. • Morphology, cultural consumption and the income also play a major role. • The municipalities of Veneto, Campania and Sardinia achieve remarkable results. Abstract The European Commission identifies separate waste collection as a primary factor in its sustainable development strategy. The EU Member States are expected to achieve a separate waste collection rate of 50% by 2020. Although Italy is not very far from such target, it features wide regional variation in the extent of separate collection. Municipal administrations are the key managerial units for the implementation of the environmental policy. By means of the Classification and Regression Tree Analysis, this work assembles Italian municipalities (NUTS-4) into homogenous groups, that share common characteristics with respect to geographic, economic and socio-cultural covariates. Three benchmark regions are identified, i.e. Veneto, Sardinia and much of Campania. The results achieved in these areas depend on the joint action of citizens and institutions and may inspire local-level waste management policies in other areas of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the application of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to spatial planning in Italy. We discuss SEA effectiveness by focusing on three main dimensions: sustainable development, environmental policy integration and democratic governance. The methodology includes the analysis of 27 SEA reports and interviews with key actors. Findings suggest that SEA is beginning to insinuate ecological rationality and improving environmental policy integration across planning levels and disciplinary boundaries. SEA also leads to progress in transparency and communication, whereas the actual involvement of the public in decision making is still weak. Future developments may address the potential contribution of SEA to focusing planning on long-term, shared, visions of socio-ecological systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Planners' technical expertise has evolved from architectural-engineering bases to include socio-economic and environmental issues, as well as communication methods and participatory procedures. This progress challenges professional practices and educational programmes, and produces a looser image of the planner, in contrast with that of engineers and architects. After an analysis of how technical paradigms have evolved in the planning discipline in Italy, the paper focuses on the emerging types of expertise that are expected to form the planner's ‘toolbox’. This requires linking the discipline's progress with that of the professional practice, as well as connecting the legal framework with the educational system. The paper concludes by analysing the different kinds of technical expertise, taking into consideration the diverse roles played by planners. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose - The chapter aims at representing the results of a case study with concern to the economic and environmental crisis triggered by Ilva in Taranto. Design/methodology/approach - The case study design follows an ethnographic approach. The analysis is based on the collection of some qualitative interviews and documentation related to the environmental conflict engendered by the Ilva of Taranto, which has been the largest steel mill in Europe since the 1990s. Findings -- The analysis of the empirical data shows some interesting insights about (a) the growing contradictions in time of crisis in the relationship between the 'the four pillars' of sustainability (economy, social justice and society, environment, culture); (b) the importance of the social pillar in playing a key role in the management of local conflicts and in stimulating change within social and economic organizations; (c) the difficulty to promote sustainable policies through a multilevel governance approach able to synthesize the complexity of the scenarios emerging at the local, regional, national and European levels, in order to create an alternative way of development. Originality/value -- The ethnographic approach is useful to analyse in depth the core of the environmental conflict and the divergent developmental scenarios expressed by the different categories of actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local authorities have an important role in improving the quality of life of their citizens by managing environmental and social issues for a sustainable development of the territory. While an increasing number of municipalities are implementing Environmental Management Systems (ISO14001-EMAS) to manage their environmental issues, standardised tools for social ones are still lacking. This paper proposes a theoretical framework for developing an Integrated Environmental and Social Management System through the inclusion of SA 8000 (Social Accountability) requirements with an innovative focus on citizens' information and consultation and highlights the main outcomes of its application in a small Italian municipality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Sediment management is becoming a critical issue around the world, particularly where the development of Harbor facilities, the conservation of coastal environments and needs of tourism compete for sustainable use of sediment resources. In order to apply an Integrated Coastal Zone Management policy, new approaches for management of the dredged harbor material need to be considered by the scientific community and local stakeholders. The information contained in the Italian Ministry of the Environment Acts related to dredging of Carrara Harbor determined the sediment volume dredged between 1993 and 2008 (849,500m3) and allows us to estimate an average rate of material dredged from the harbor mouth (10,000–13,000m3/yr). Different management options were chosen by the authorities based on the contamination level of dredged sediment: nourishment (344,500m3), offshore dumping (305,000m3), disposal in landfill (10,000m3) or in Confined Disposal Facilities (215,000m3). The present study’s goal is to determine the sedimentary budget of the Apuo-Versilian coast and to use the result to guide a compensation strategy to reduce the sediment deficit caused by the disposal of sediments out of the sand-sharing system. In particular, the present study provides a detailed reference frame that can lead to adopt a compensation strategy to balance the eroding evolutionary trend of the coastline adjacent to shallow water dredging areas. The procedure described in the paper is a policy initiative based on scientific results and could provide a model for other jurisdictions developing their own sediment quantitative estimation within an ICZM approach and a sustainable development of sedimentary resource’s management. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper investigates the potential of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to contribute to the high-level policy objective of fostering democratisation in spatial planning. Democratic SEA is conceptualised by discussing environmental citizenship, public control over policy making, and participants' empowerment. The empirical investigation is based on the analysis of SEA documents produced during 25 municipal spatial planning processes in Italy between 2004 and 2010. The study found that advances are more evident in the creation of cross-sectoral governance networks than in the involvement of citizens and civil-society organisations. SEA seems to be increasing transparency and expanding the scope of democratic control over spatial planning decisions, though the boundaries between experts, decision makers and citizens are clearly demarcated. To strengthen democratisation processes, the paper argues that all participants should consider themselves equally responsible within SEA networks, and be ready to question alternative environmental value systems that underpin spatial planning processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluates the effectiveness of agri-environmental policy strategies in Sicily, Italy. Combination of discrete multicriteria approaches used for handling qualitative information; Derivation of the ranking of four alternative scenarios of agri-environmental policies; Use of agricultural policies in promoting sustainable rural development.

The minimization of negative externalities is a key aspect in the development of a circular and sustainable economic model. At the local scale, especially in urban areas, externalities are generated by the adverse impacts of air pollution on human health. Local air quality policies and plans often lack of considerations and instruments for the quantification and evaluation of external health costs. Support for decision-makers is needed, in particular during the implementation stage of air quality plans. Modelling tools based on the impact pathway approach can provide such support. In this paper, the implementation of health impacts and externalities analysis in air quality planning is evaluated. The state of the art in European member states is reported, considering whether and how health effects have been included in the planning schemes. The air quality plan of the Piemonte region in Italy is then considered. A case study is analyzed to evaluate a plan action, i.e., the development of the district heating system in the city of Turin. The DIATI (Dipartimento di Ingegneria dell'Ambiente, del Territorio e delle Infrastrutture) Dispersion and Externalities Model (DIDEM model) is applied to detect the scenario with the highest external cost reduction. This methodology results are extensible and adaptable to other actions and measures, as well as other local policies in Europe. The use of health externalities should be encouraged and integrated into the present methodology supporting air quality planning. Efforts should be addressed to quantify and minimize the overall uncertainty of the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports that manufacturers around the world cite waste reduction as their number one sustainability concern and their most important environmental issue. The international study on environmental trends conducted for Dow Corning Corporation, which questioned more than 1,000 managers and professionals, found that eight out of ten in the Germany, Italy, Brazil, and the U.S. ranked waste reduction as a higher priority than increasing energy efficiency, developing environmentally-friendly products, or any other environmental factor.

This article presents a study which aims at analyzing the policies and the tactics of two European medium sized city regions to apply a sustainable sound pattern of development. Both cities are located in industrialized areas: Bochum in the Valley of Ruhr in Germany and Modena in the region of Emilia-Romagna. Similarities can be detected such as the environmental threats and the common cultural and political context. The article compares these cases and provides contrasts and similarities stemming from the two different developmental patterns.